The View from the Mud Shack

Sunday, March 24, 2019

Gang Aft Agley

DECEMBER 19, 2016

So spoke the poet, Robert Burns. He was referring to my annual bike ride the day after Thanksgiving when he said “The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men gang aft agley.” That was the case this year, for sure.

I ride the Las Cruces Loop trail several times a year but always the day after Thanksgiving to burn off that celebration of gluttony. The map indicates the trail is 18.7 miles but I have to add another 4 to 5 miles to access the mapped portion, making the total ride 23-24 miles. This year I was stymied by a flat front tire about 2 miles into the ride. I returned home, repaired the tire using a tube I had in the garage left over from the San Juan hut trip from 2014 and resolved to ride over the weekend. So on Sunday, I took my trusty Marin East Peak out of the garage only to find the tire flat again!! I filled it with air and saw the green Slime the tube was filled with permeating through the tire tread. Slime is a sort of puncture-sealing/preventing concoction that is a necessity here in the desert Southwest where there are all kinds of hazards to bike tires like goat-heads, thorns, cacti, and the Las Cruces roads themselves. Monday trip to the bike shop on the calendar.

Nice New Tire

The new tire installed I planned another attempt at the ride. My step-son, Ben, offered to accompany me the next weekend. Set up the ride for Saturday. Wrong!!! A cold front came through accompanied by winds getting near hurricane force all day Saturday. No way we were riding in 40 to 50 mph gusts with 25-30 mph sustained wind speeds. So about 10AM Sunday we set out in 34F temp with a slight wind from the east.

Down the ditch known as the Leasburg Canal to the intersection of the loop trail. This irrigation canal is a necessity for the farms in the area.

One of the gates that diverts water to the pecan orchard

You can see the ditch is empty this time of year. It does make for a convenient storage place for tumbleweeds though.

Riding along, heading south then west, there are always some interesting sights:

Vineyard

The ultimate in home protection

Guinea Hens

By now we are about 4 miles into the ride, heading west toward the Rio Grande.

Picacho Peak

We turned South along the east bank of the river. The trees and grass indicate the “wetlands” or green belt along the river as it winds through the Chihuahuan high desert. Of course, the river only flows through this area a few weeks a year in the spring and early summer when its waters can be tapped for irrigation. This time of the year, it’s better for doing doughnuts with your ATV:

After about 3 1/2 miles along the river the trail transitions to road riding through the historic town of La Mesilla then through the campus of New Mexico State University (GO AGGIES!!):

Across the street from the campus is a shopping center with a nice market and Milagro Coffee. This is a natural place to take a break, about 15 miles into the ride. Relax, have a latte and a biscochito or cheesecake. Refreshed, we remount. One more good climb then it’s all downhill.

But Mr. Burns had other plans. As we progressed through the parking lot there was a plaintive cry: “Dad, I’ve got a flat.” Ben had recently redone his front tire but not the rear from which he extracted three thorns. So, back to Milagro, call for a ride, and wait. Better luck next time!!!!

Shiny Happy Pollos

FEBRUARY 27, 2017

First, a disclaimer. Normally, posts about animals appear on our other site, Pirate Dogs and Pilgrims . But the dogs are upset with us and refuse to help out. Seems their mother has been taking the youngest, Beany Bacciagalupe, with her on her morning walks and the rest of the canines have gone on strike. So…….

Back in November, a new chicken yard was promised as a birthday present to the lady of the Shack. Last weekend (Feb. 19), it got built.

The Chicken Yard

The old yard was based on 4 foot high fencing with a bird fabric roof that made it difficult to work inside of it. We’re a little old for extended duck-walking. Also there was no formal gate. One unclipped the “roof”, untied four rope strips from a fencepost near the small door the chickens use for egress from the coop, then pulled the fence aside. As can be seen from the photos, the new yard incorporates a 6 ft. X 6 ft. iron gate. Tres fancy for a barnyard. With higher stakes and fencing, now one can enter the yard just about fully erect. We ran the new fence outside the old fencing to add a little area in which the flock could entertain themselves.

Other Views of the Yard

As for the composition of the flock itself, there are several breeds, each with nicknames and different personalities.

Brutus the Rooster

There are 3 Buff Orpingtons—-the rooster, Brutus, and hens Sainte and Marie. (“We’ll make a space/ in the lives / that we planned…” Consult a folk music encyclopedia if you don’t understand the reference.) It’s hard to tell the hens apart out in the yard but in the nests: Sainte will let you get eggs from under her and is very calm; Marie will squawk and peck your hands.

There are 3 Transylvania Naked Necks, aka, Turkens–Ruby, Gloria, and Barbidoux. Ruby is red-tinged all over. Gloria is golden with a reddish top-knot while Barbidoux is golden and blonde. (We’re certain the kids favorite Language Arts teacher in junior high is thrilled with the compliment.)

Cuckoo Maran

Next are the 3 Cuckoo Marans, also called “morons” or “macaroons”. Again, hard to determine which is which at any time. These hens are pretty friendly, talkative, and lay lovely almost chocolate-colored eggs.

2 Banties are incorporated (sort of) into the flock. These came from a group of chicks we got for free from the feed store. Most of the chicks grew into roosters and we were able to return them. One of the Banties gets along with her fellow chickens; the other is called “the millennial” because she is obnoxious and spoiled. She is at the bottom of the pecking order so some of her angst is understandable. But this fact doesn’t make her behavior any less obnoxious when we try to clean the nests and she screams and demands separate dining facilities, even jumping out the open door of the nesting box if her demands are not acceded to immediately. A true millennial….

Silver-laced Wyandottes, 7 in number, make up the second largest grouping. These birds are garrulous , friendly to the point of being intrusive, and very good layers. There have been a few occasions when via a slip of the tongue they were called “Weimaraners” and that nickname has stuck and is used interchangeably with their actual breed designation.

Finally, 9 Rhode Island reds. Obtained as chicks from the person who built the coops. Good layers, difficult to tell apart if they are roaming about the pen, but with distinct personalities in the nesting boxes. Not sure how many are in each classification, but basically there are 3 personality types: the Photobomber–friendly to the point she will almost fall out of the nest to get attention; Squawky—-ruffles her feathers and screams bloody murder at the opening of the nesting box door; and Bitey–one does NOT put fingers anywhere in the nesting box unless one values those appendages naught.

Adventures in Swamp Cooler Land

MAY 15, 2017

I’m a little late this year getting the swamp cooler, aka evaporative cooler, ready for the season.

Those of you reading this from more humid realms may not be familiar with this device. Out West, especially in the desert, it’s necessary to add some humidity to the cooling air. Hence, an evaporative cooler which mixes water with the air it blows into the house. You can get more information here. Our water in the desert has a high mineral content which leads to corrosive failure of metal parts so annual maintenance of a swamp cooler is imperative.

When I inspected ours several weeks ago, I realized one of the louvers was rotting out. One of the supporting legs had also rotted through. I did some research to decide whether to replace the unit (several hundred dollars plus installation) or fix it myself. Being an old retired coot with lots of free time on a pretty fixed income, as well as years of experience with swamp coolers, I chose the latter course, of course.

So today, having all my ducks in a row, knowing the correct type and size leg kit, the part number for the louver from the manufacturer’s web-site, I journeyed to the local dealer—-a hardware/building supply/miscellaneous goods outfit called Sutherland’s. I bought the correct leg kit, a little disappointed I had to buy a full set of four instead of just the parts I needed to fix one leg. As long as I was there I bought some cleaner as well. While the lovely señorita and I waited for the computer to approve my purchase, i inquired about ordering a louver, they being an authorized dealer for my brand of swamp cooler. She found the manager and when he was done assisting another customer, we headed into his office and he began to take down the make/model/id#/etc of my cooler. He was pleased and surprised that I even had the number of the louver. Suddenly a light bulb went on over his head (metaphorically speaking, of course) and he recalled a cooler they had cannibalized a year ago. Mirabile dictu, there were not one but THREE louvers of the right size and configuration sitting on one of those “not sure what to do with these” shelves all hardware stores have.. And about half the price of a newly ordered one, less freight!!!

Needless to say, my swamp cooler is restored to usable condition.

But, as with any home project, there was a slight emergency. The little valve that supplies the water to the unit had frozen from corrosion (our water is very high in mineral content) and broke, forcing me to turn off the water supply at the street, As I pulled out of the driveway to visit my favorite Ace Hardware a 1/4 mile away to get a new valve, wouldn’t you know the iPod would chose to play the title song of the Beatles’ second movie: HELP.

Aging, me??

AUGUST 20, 2017

So this past week, I got my first serious taste of feeling “old.” Not writing this to complain or whine about the depravities of aging, rather to share a few insights and ironies encountered on the journey……….

Followers of the Mud Shack might recall a couple of years ago, accompanied by friends and family, we accomplished an epic adventure, the mountain bike ride on the Butch Cassidy trail. This feat was performed despite a ganglion cyst on my left foot. Said lump was removed that fall.

Unfortunately, earlier this summer it recurred. I couldn’t get a timely appointment with the podiatrist and the stupid thing ended up splitting. Good in that the lump was gone; bad because there was an open wound. Got to the podiatrist a couple of days later (why do bodily malfunctions always occur on weekends?) He played with it, described a treatment regimen, and things proceeded rosily along—-for about two weeks.

I awoke at 1AM on a Monday morning in utter agony. My foot was swollen, crimson bordering on violet. Took a pain pill left over from some previous procedure and sort of got back to sleep. Examining my foot in the clearer light of day, I figured it was a gout attack and pursued the recommended soaking and NSAIDs. Unfortunately, the redness proceeded up my leg and my temperature increased, spiking at about 102.8F. Infection!

The next day, after some family drama I won’t relate, I called my podiatrist and got an early afternoon appointment. He diagnosed the infection as cellulitis and I got a new menu of antibiotics and steroids. We figure the infection likely came from the chicken yard—-I usually wear crocs when doing chores and, the yard being a heaven for bacteria, picked up some staph from not having a large enough band-aid on the wound. Got a nice new pair of Wellies to solve that issue.

The gout discussion was funny. The usual less red meat, less shell-fish, then no red wine (purines). The doc recommended white wine. Now my primary care physician is an advocate of the benefits of a little red wine in reducing cholesterol and benefitting heart function. White wine is discouraged because of the nitrites and negative effects on the liver and circulatory system. Beer, of course, is only allowed in very small quantities, a couple of bottles a week. My podiatrist recommends scotch whiskey as being beneficial for avoiding the gout attacks!!! Just got to wonder at medical science sometimes……..

Anyway, spending the last week forced to use crutches, cane, and a walker led my mind into consideration of impending physical decline and recalled to mind Wordsworth’s “Intimations of Immortality.” I am pretty much up and about as I write this on a rainy Sunday morning here in the monsoonal Southwestern high desert. And I’m also really disappointed because I so wanted to end this post with a selfie taken in one of those powered shopping carts at Sam’s Club but I was feeling well enough to use the regular carts on our visit yesterday…………

The Unreality Show

MARCH 23, 2018

I just don’t get it. When did immigration and funding the government merge as issues? The Congress passed a $1.3TRILLION budget for the current fiscal year. Included was a massive increase in #endlesswar spending and an increase in funding for border security. Yet Bozo 45 wants to veto it because he didn’t get all the money he wanted for his stupid wall and the Democrats didn’t solve the DACA problem that he created!!!

The border wall is quite impressive where we cross between Columbus NM and Las Palomas, CH.

I don’t recall it as being quite so impressive in the Douglas AZ area but it has been a few years since we visited there. And how in hell we’re gonna build a wall in the middle of the Rio Grande totally escapes me. We build it on the US side, we cede the much-needed water to Mexico. It appears very dubious that the Mexican government will grant us the land to build it on their side of the river. Stalemate, Bozo.

I recently read Francisco Cantu’s The Line Becomes A River. The sensors and toys that ICE and Homeland Security have at their disposal are most impressive, even if their policies sometimes sicken me. But if you are interested in the issues surrounding the border, this book is a good place to start. Coming to visit us and taking a trip to The Pink Store in Palomas would help your understanding. (The $3 margaritas are well worth it.) But while you just wave at the border guards as you cross from the US to Mexico, you had best be sure to have your passport to get back home!!!!

So as I was writing this,Politico and other news feeds reported that 45 WOULD sign the spending bill. Now I’m sure many on the right would use this as an excuse to bash the previous reporting, that 45 doesn’t ever catch a break from the “fake news” media. But for me, in my humble opinion, this is exactly the problem with this “presidency.” It seems to be all about the person and the tweets. Policy, consistency, and empathy are from some bygone era. We have entered a reality tv show in real life. And since I am not a reality tv fan, I find it frustrating and damaging to our country.

A Bolt in the NSA and Other Topics

MARCH 24, 2018

An interesting analysis from The Economist about the new NSA advisor: John Bolton. Some of you might remember him as failing his confirmation hearing before the Senate to be appointed UN Ambassador then becoming a recess appointment to that position by that great foreign policy guru, George W, Bush.

PBS has a new children’s show starting in April called Pinkalicious and Peteriffic. Judging from the ads, La-la pink dragons and little pink houses, I’m hoping the show is more balanced than it appears in this age of #MeToo since the previews seem to perpetuate stale old gender stereotypes.

Gotta love Elon Musk: Leaders on two congressional committees separately called on Mark Zuckerberg to testify, and Elon Musk deleted Tesla and SpaceX’s Facebook pages. (axiospm) I must confess this same reaction to FB has driven the resurrection of my blogs.

Normally, animals appear on the companion blog Pirate Dogs and Pilgrims. But ever since we built a new chicken yard, the dogs have been refusing to cover chicken news items. Our suspicion is that they are jealous of the new digs which enable los pollos to keep treats away from the fencing, frustrating the dogs’ attempts to also partake of the various treats the chickens get. So this article about the rise of backyard chickens appears here. BTW, we do NOT cuddle hens or allow them free access to the backyard. They are one of the most efficient engines of desertification ever encountered. All that investment in rose bushes and irises would be gone in a matter of hours were the hens allowed access to them.

Have a great weekend and #MarchforOurLives.

Organ Mountains

Sunday, March 24, 2019